Rainy Days and Memories
by caseymac42
Summary: When the men of 51's crew choose to embark on new career goals, Hank Stanley brings them together for one last weekend for a stroll down memory lane.
1. Chapter 1

**Rainy Days and Memories**

After seven years together, the men of Station 51's A-shift knew that their time together as a crew was slowly coming to an end. Hank Stanley was preparing to take his battalion chief's exam, Mike Stoker, Roy, and Johnny were preparing to take their captain's exam, and Marco and Chet were studying to become engineers. It was suggested by Hank that they spend a last weekend together, for old time's sake. Originally the plans were to spend time at their favorite mountain retreat…a cabin by the lake. However, when the forecast of a major rainstorm materialized, the plans shifted to some place local, and more convenient.

Normally the get together would have been held at Hank's house, but when his wife Suzanne told him that she would be hosting her sister's bridal shower at the house that same weekend, the location of the guys' get together had to be shifted. Roy's house was out…the kids were having a sleepover party of their own. Mike's place was out…he was having plumbing issues. He couldn't imagine having five firefighters over, drinking and eating, and having bathroom troubles. Marco's new place, a house that he had bought a few months earlier, was still in too much disarray to host any parties…and Chet still lived in his two bedroom apartment. So…the winning locale was Johnny's house…the large house that he had bought out from under the nose of his partner a few years earlier.

Having finished up his cleaning and shopping, the day before, Johnny was in his bedroom looking for something in his closet when he had come across a rather large box of items. Dragging it out of the closet, he sat down on the floor, and started to sift through it. Many of the things were rather familiar and made him smile, as they were mementos of his time at good old Station 51. Looking up at one of his bedroom windows, Johnny sighed loudly…the rain was coming down very hard. Realizing that the weekend's entertainment was going to have remain indoors, the paramedic figured that he would at least have a box of things for them to reminisce and laugh over, as part of the entertainment.

Hearing the doorbell ring, Johnny made his way down the stairs and to the front door. Standing there soaking wet, despite wearing a jacket and hood, was Marco. Over one shoulder he had his overnight bag slung, and in his arms he had two bags of groceries.

Opening the outer screen door, Johnny greeted his long-time friend, and took one of the bags of groceries.

"Buenas dias, amigo. Let me take one of those bags."

Walking inside Johnny's house, Marco smiled appreciatively, while putting down the other bag, and taking off his wet jacket.

"Where do you want me to put my jacket, Johnny?"

"Hang on a minute, I'll be right there."

Returning from the kitchen, the paramedic took Marco's jacket.

"I'm hanging everyone's wet stuff in the hall bathroom. That way it'll drip into the tub. If you wanna come with me, I'll give you a towel to dry off with."

Following his friend down the hallway, Marco stood behind Johnny as he hung up the wet jacket on the shower rod.

Reaching into the bathroom closet, Johnny handed Marco a towel to dry himself off with.

"Thanks for the towel. It's really coming down out there." Marco commented as he wiped his face off.

"Yeah, it sure is. Glad we're not working in this weather…nothing good ever comes of it. Come on, I'll get you a beer. The others should be here soon."

Making their way to the kitchen, Johnny handed Marco a bottle of Budweiser, then started to put away the groceries that Marco had brought with him.

"You really didn't have to buy anything, Marco…I have plenty of stuff in the house."

"I know." came the reply. "I was in a cooking mood…thought maybe I'd make some of my Mexican specialties."

Grinning in return at his friend's comment, Johnny shook his head. "You don't have to ask me twice."

As the two men were talking, the doorbell rang.

"You relax, I'll get it. Any bets on who it's going to be?"

"My money is on Cap and Mike. I think they were coming over together. Captain Stanley was going to give Mike a hand with his studying this morning."

Answering the door, it was in fact Hank and Mike…just as wet as Marco had been.

"Hi guys…come on in. Marco's in the kitchen. If you give me your jackets, I'll get you some towels to dry off with."

Handing his very wet jacket to his paramedic, Hank smiled wryly. "I guess it's a good thing that I followed my instincts to keep our get together local, instead of going away to the mountains."

"Yep…very. But then again, Cap…that's why you're the boss, and get paid the big bucks…to follow your instincts and make the right decisions."

Hearing the younger man's response, Hank couldn't help but smile. "Big bucks, pal? If you think I'm getting paid the big bucks…you're a bit off in your line of thinking."

Johnny shrugged and smiled his usual grin. "Hey…all I know is…you're making a lot more money than I am."

With that he went to take the two wet jackets to the bathroom to drip dry, and bring back two more towels.

While waiting for Johnny to return with the towels, Hank and Mike went to the kitchen to say hello to Marco.

"Hey there, pal…how are you?"

"Wet…same as you guys."

Pulling out two beers, Marco handed them to his friends.

"Bottoms up." said Mike with a smile, as he held up his bottle in a toast.

"How did the studying go this morning, Mike?" Marco asked interestedly.

Answering for his friend, Hank chimed in first. "Great. Mike is going to be one heck of a captain."

Arriving back at the kitchen, Johnny handed his two newly arrived friends their towels.

"I wonder what's keeping your partner and Kelly?"

"Oh…that's an easy one, Cap. It's Chet…he's never ready when he is getting picked up for something. Roy called this morning and told me that he would be bringing Chet…the VW bug isn't in working order right now. He said something about the transmission."

As the four men were talking in the kitchen, the doorbell again sounded.

Following Johnny to the front door, the other men were there to greet Roy and Chet.

"Glad you made it, partner. I was beginning to think that maybe we'd have to send out a search party for you guys."

Glancing over at Chet, Roy sighed. "It was close."

"Beer's in the kitchen. I'll take your jackets, and bring back some towels for you guys."

Once Johnny was back, and handed the towels to his friends, someone made the suggestion to take the party downstairs to the den.

"Why don't we go downstairs, John? We can start a fire, and take out some of this chill in the air."

Hearing Hank's suggestion, Johnny couldn't help but to laugh, something that irritated Chet. He knew that the reason for his friend's laughter undoubtedly had something to do with him.

"What's so funny, Gage?"

"Well….I was thinking, Chet….you should be the one to get the fire in the fireplace going, after all, you are pretty good at starting fires."

Staring at his nemesis, Chet stood with his arms crossed in front of him.

"What are you talking about, Johnny? I never started a fire."

"That's not what I recall."

"Well, then you have a bad memory, Gage. I may have been a jokester, and slow at rope drills…and even lost my badge a few times, but I'm no arsonist."

Nodding his head, Roy smiled knowingly. "He's right, Chet…I do recall a few."

"Who asked you, Roy?"

Hank looked at the curly haired firefighter and grinned slyly.

"Come to think of it Chet, there were a couple. Didn't you set fire to your skis…and the television?"

"The television?" Chet replied defensively. "That wasn't me, Cap…THAT was Gage."

"You had a hand in it, Chet…and don't try to tell me otherwise."

Chet continued to stand looking at his captain with disbelief.

Listening to the exchange, Marco started to laugh. "I remember that. You and Johnny tried to fix it…and it blew up…right on the squad room table."

"See…" Cher replied feeling a little bit vindicated. "And Gage here tried to buy us a new set. Uncle Ernie got you a good deal on a new TV….but unfortunately it was a bit smaller than we had all anticipated."

"But I did get us a new set."

Roy smiled knowingly as he remembered the exchange that he and Johnny had had about the "new" TV set that he had brought in.

"You ended up bringing in your set from home. I seem to recall you mentioning something about you not watching television very much, especially when you were home. I remember you grinning as you said that."

Sighing softly, Johnny nodded his head. "Yes, Roy…I said something like that. But like I said…I got us a new TV."

Wanting to deflect some of the attention away from him and Johnny, Chet brought up a fire that had been caused by two other members of their crew.

"You guys are so quick to put me and Gage in our place, that you all seemed to have forgotten about another fire that was started by someone else not named Kelly or Gage."

The other men looked around at each other trying to remember what other fire there was at the station that could have been started by other crewmembers.

Chiming in together, they all waited for Chet's answer. "Who?"

"Mike and Marco. Yes, Mr. Perfect himself had a hand in starting a fire. Don't you guys remember the little invention you two came up with?"

Hank nodded his head in remembrance at what Chet was referring to.

"I do remember that, Chet. The invention that was supposed to help put out fires…you ended up starting one with it. I also remember you telling us that it had to warm up first…real helpful at a fire."

Running his fingers through his hair, Mike wearily eyed his friend. "Okay, Chet…I'll give you that one. Just remember, there's a whole lot more coming your way."

"Bring it on, Stoker."

Taking the party down to the den, Johnny started the fire in his large stoned fireplace.

Gathered around the fireplace, Hank couldn't help but to feel bad that their last weekend together would be a wash due to the stormy weather.

"It's too bad that the weather had to be so bad. I was really hoping that we'd have a fun weekend in the mountains. "

Roy tried to put a positive spin on the situation. "It's no big deal, Cap. I'm sure we'll still have fun. Look at it this way…it got you out of fishing. We all know how much you like fish."

Hearing Roy's comment, Hank couldn't help but to smile.

"It is chilly. Anyone for a cup of coffee?" asked Johnny.

"As long as it's not Chet who is making it…his coffee is lousy."

Chet glared over at Stoker.

"Thanks, Mike. Everyone else's coffee is world-class?"

"Chet, I think he was referring to all the times that you made coffee with eggshells. We'd all take a sip of the coffee, and end up with a piece of eggshell stuck between our teeth."

Snickering, Roy shook his head. "I remember the very first time Chet made the coffee with the eggshells. It was right about the time that I had found out that my best friend had bought this very house right out from under my nose."

Johnny shook his head and groaned. "Roy, don't start that again. You didn't seem too interested in this house. I guess I figured…hey, why not? Anyway…that was a long time ago."

"Yeah, but still…this house could have come in handy."

"Yeah, like for all the times your dear sweet mother-in-law comes to visit, right Roy?" said Marco with a wink.

Letting out a loud groan, Roy shook his head. "Don't remind me, Marco. What was it you said about your mother-in-law, Cap? Something about you introducing her to a friend of yours?"

"Yep. I figured that I would do her a favor and introduce her to someone so she'd leave me and Suzanne alone. I have…or rather I HAD an old friend who was a lawyer. I thought the two of them would hit it off…and they did. But then things went south…and they decided to hate me for introducing them to one another. I may not see my friend anymore, but at least I no longer have mother-in-law problems…she won't come near me."

"That's one way to do it, Cap." Marco replied with a smile.

"Maybe so, Marco…but the bad thing about it is that whenever my wife and I have a disagreement about something, she always throws that in my face…and I end up sleeping on the sofa."


	2. Chapter 2

**Rainy Days and Memories (Chapter 2)**

"Maybe so, Marco…but the bad thing about it is that whenever my wife and I have a disagreement about something, she always throws that in my face…and I end up sleeping on the sofa."

Hearing his captain's last comment, Johnny couldn't help to smile.

"Hold that thought, guys. Let me get the coffee going, and I'll be back. Whatever you do…don't talk about anything good until I get back."

While waiting for the paramedic to return to the group, the guys were talking about the weather.

"Boy, this rain is something else. I don't remember the last time it rained like this here."

Hearing Chet's comment, the remaining men all looked out at the large window. The rain was torrential, the wind was blowing quite heavily, and the sky, despite it being a late afternoon in mid-July, was dark and ominous.

Sighing softly, Roy interrupted everyone's silent musing.

"I don't know if it was the last time it rained like this, but I remember another time that it was at least this bad. Johnny will remember it too."

Capturing everyone's attention, the other men all turned their gazes to the paramedic.

"It was one hell of a rescue, too."

Returning downstairs, Johnny clapped his hands together. "So…what'd I miss?"

"We were talking about the weather. Your partner said you'd remember a rescue that was made during a rather nasty rainstorm."

Nodding his head, Johnny did in fact remember exactly what rescue Roy was referring to.

"I sure do, Chet. A few years ago…two kids in a sewer. I even remember their names…Charles and Kirby."

Marco gave his friend a surprised look. "You remember their names?"

"I sure do. I almost drowned down there in those sewers. The kids were safely above ground. Roy was already up there too. I slipped off the ladder, and was so cold from the water, that I had a hell of a time holding on to the ladder. I was real lucky that I made it out of there okay."

Stopping to think about it some more, Johnny remembered something else that had happened around that very same time.

"Cap was talking about having some disagreements with his wife before, but you know Roy…you and Joanne have had your share too."

The senior paramedic shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. "What couple doesn't?"

"Yeah, look at you two." Chet replied with a snicker.

"Ha…ha. I remember that shift that you came to work muttering to yourself…"

"Yeah, and I told you to butt out of it…but you didn't listen, did you?"

The other men waited anxiously to hear the rest of the story, all of them leaning forward in their seats.

"What happened, Roy?" Mike asked.

"Funny you should be the one to ask about it, Mike. My partner here tried to play Sigmund Freud. I had mentioned something about a fight that Jo and I had had the night before. It started with me saying something innocent about your spaghetti."

"My spaghetti?"

"Yeah. Joanne had made spaghetti for supper that night. I made a passing comment about it not being as good as your spaghetti…and she blew a gasket. Johnny here said that our fight really had nothing to do with your spaghetti. It was more about the fact that she resented my job and how it had taken me away from her and the kids for long stretches of time."

"And…" Johnny tried interject.

"And…he tried to help. Why don't you tell everyone what you did, partner."

Hank's expression mirrored everyone else's. "What did you do, John?"

"I called Joanne and gave her Stoker's recipe. She seemed happy enough to get it."

"You did what?" Mike asked in shock that Johnny would have done that.

"I gave her your recipe. Roy even said that she had tried it and felt that it tasted better than hers. At any rate, a crisis was averted."

Going back up to the kitchen, Johnny returned downstairs with a tray with a large pot of coffee on it, as well as six ceramic mugs, milk, and sugar. Once everyone had their coffee, and were comfortably seated, their get together started in earnest.

"Well…since I am your captain…for how much longer, I'm not sure, but since I am the senior member here, I will start this little party off with a proper toast."

Standing up, Hank raised his mug as he looked around the room at each of the men…HIS men. Each one of them had his own distinct personality and quirks, something that he would never forget. Though they were an interesting bunch, they sure would have made a great character study.

"I guess I would just like to say thank you to each one of you. You are all a testament to all that's good in this world, and especially to all that's good about the County Fire Department. Your skill, courage, and professionalism have helped to make me look so good. It is largely because of that, that I was able to take the next step, and become a battalion chief. And I will do so with the warm memories of you all in my heart and in my mind. I thank you. Here's to seven amazing years."

As the men all lifted their coffee mugs in good cheer, the years that they had spent together as a crew passed before all of them…the good times, the laughter, and the close calls.

"You remember your first day at 51's, Cap?"

"I sure do, Marco. I actually remember being a little nervous about taking your crew over."

"Why? It's not like we were a bad group or anything."

Hank smiled as he shook his head.

"Not at all, John. I knew you were a good group. It's just that I also knew that you had other captains before me. Captain Hammer was known as a pretty no-nonsense kind of guy…I just wasn't quite sure what to expect…that's all."

Chet couldn't help but to smile as he asked his next question. "Did we exceed your expectations?"

"Well…" Hank started, as he looked down at the floor. "Maybe not all at once. I knew you were a pretty good crew, but I just didn't know how good until I had started to work with you for a while."

"Where is Captain Hammer now, Cap?"

"If I'm not mistaken, Roy…he's an instructor at the Fire Academy. He left 51's to tend to some personal business, and then when a slot opened up at the academy, he took it."

Mike, who had been sitting somewhat quietly listening, though he wasn't naturally that way, asked the million dollar question.

"So…there is one thing that we wanna know, Cap. Why'd you burn McConnike's hat?"

Looking at each one of his men, Hank then grinned. "Sorry fellas…that's classified information. If I told you, I'd have to kill you. And frankly, I wouldn't want that on my conscience…or your blood on my hands. Maybe one day when we're all old and sitting around at the nursing home, I'll tell ya…but right now…no dice."

"Awww, that's not fair."

Hank glanced over at Chet, a raised eyebrow signaling his slight irritation at the younger man's reaction.

"It IS fair, Kelly. And I still have to work with the man, so please give it a rest. Let's talk about something more interesting…like Gage's love life."

Looking up from his coffee mug, Johnny nearly choked with surprise.

"MY love life? Why MY love life?"

"Well…Roy and I are married, and seeing that no one else is in a serious relationship…why not?"

Johnny inwardly cringed. He knew that he had been in quite a few relationships over the years…none lasting very long.

"I'll start." Roy offered. "When I met you, and we were going through the paramedic training, you were with a young lady named Delores."

Johnny nodded his head. "Yes…guilty as charged."

Jumping in, Chet snickered at what he knew would be his response. "And don't forget about your two engagements…Barbara and Valerie."

The paramedic groaned loudly. "Whatever you wanna call what was between me and Barbara…I can assure you that it was NOT an engagement. We were at a movie and there was a wedding scene, and she made a passing comment about it, and I sorta agreed with her…she had interpreted my hand squeeze for something else. And Valerie…well, I gotta admit I was a bit off the mark about that one. She was cute but had all those obnoxious kids. She ended up engaged to someone else."

"In other words, she dodged a bullet."

Giving his longtime nemesis a glare, Johnny laughed sarcastically. "Ha…ha. If you ask me, Chet…I was the one who dodged the bullet."

"Wasn't there a stewardess that you were involved with?"

"You too, Mike?" Johnny asked incredulously, thinking that the engineer would be the one who would ultimately cut him some slack. "Yes, there was a stewardess. Her name was Sue. I thought she may have been the one. We liked a lot of the same things, but she was too bossy."

"And when you got hit by that car, didn't you have a physical therapist named Mary Lynn? She looked just like Sue, if I remember correctly."

Another groan slipped out of the paramedic's mouth. "Yes Marco. Her name was Mary Lynn, and they were dead ringers for one another."

"I seem to recall two more lovely ladies, partner. Do the names Sheila and Christy ring a bell?"

Hearing the name Christy, all the guys started to groan, however Johnny remarkably had a big grin on his face.

"Well actually, Christy and I ended up dating for a bit. She seemed to react to hostility, so that's what I gave her. It wasn't until after that warehouse rescue when me and Roy almost got caught in the explosion that she started to come around."

This time it was Chet who gave his friend an incredulous look.

"You mean to say, that WHOLE thing was an act?"

The room got quiet as Johnny pondered his answer. "Not entirely. She had me going for a while…"

"And what about that lady cop you got involved with?"

"I think you're referring to Sheila, Roy. And a hell of an experience that was. We went out to dinner, and when a guy tried to steal her purse…she went after him. I ended up spending the rest of the evening at the police station with her while she filled out the reports."

"And there've been a few nurses." Hank offered matter-of-factly.

"Yeah, there were a few. Look, I know you guys are having fun at my expense, but really. Can we move on to something or someone else?"

"Like what?" Chet asked innocently.

"Well…we were talking about Cap's relationship with Chief McConnike…let's examine that, shall we?"

Hank shrugged his shoulders, almost challenging his men to come up with something to ride him about.

"Whatever happened between the two of you could not have been too bad. That day when you had told us about him coming to the station, you had us all worried that he was some kind of ogre or something…and he wasn't."

"I told you guys, John…he was sneaky."

Roy shook his head. "But the other shoe never dropped, and you were waiting for it to."

"Give it time, pal…it still might."

"As I was saying…I think that's what we're all really gonna miss about working with you, Cap…your paranoia."

Sighing loudly as he took in the big grins on everyone else's face, Hank knew he wouldn't win this round. "Gee thanks, John."

Sensing his boss's annoyance, Johnny was quick to answer.

"Oh, I don't mean it in a negative way. It's just that you've always been so entertaining."

"Glad I can entertain you and the rest of the troop."

"Well you do have to admit that whole thing when you thought that you had arthritis was pretty amusing. You accused me of spilling the beans about it, when in reality it was YOU who did."

Hank couldn't help but to laugh at remembering that scenario. "I guess it was true, Roy. It was pretty silly of me to jump to conclusions like that. And it did prove that everyone should get a check- up every now and then."

Whatever happened to that handy dandy home gymnasium, anyway?"

"I sold it, Mike…to the same guy that bought Johnny's pull-out couch."

Looking curiously over at his partner, Roy wondered who was dumb enough to actually buy that uncomfortable piece of furniture.

"You were actually able to sell that thing, Johnny?"

"Yep. My friend Clay bought it. He loves it, and Cap's home gym, too. Says it is one of the most comfortable things that he has ever slept on."

"Go figure. He loves it. Not sure how he manages to sleep on it…I sure as heck couldn't. It kept snapping back at me whenever I tried to roll over."

As a light suddenly dawned on Chet, he recalled that morning in the locker room when the two paramedics were discussing their night together as roommates in Johnny's apartment.

"Oh, I remember that. Roy was staying at your place when his house was getting fumigated. You were talking about your neighbor's fight with her boyfriend, and how she and the gang came banging on your door."

"Yep." replied Johnny with a nod.

"And there I was in this god awful sleeping thing, in my underwear, and everyone gathered around me. I felt like Snow White waking up and seeing the seven dwarfs gathered around her."

Looking around the room, Chet made an announcement.

"You know what I think you need, Gage?"

A roll of his eyes, Johnny decided that he was not going to take the bait. "I could probably answer that a number of ways, Chet…but I'm not going to. Once we all go our separate ways, there'll be things and people I'll miss…but your constant badgering and bating won't be one of them."

"Aw, I'm touched Johnny. But what I was GOING to say was that I think you need a pet…maybe a dog or something."

"A dog?" Johnny repeated. "I've had enough interactions with animals on the job not to need one at home. Boot…Henry…not to mention the cat that gave birth on my bed…lions…tigers, and bears. I think between all the rescues that Roy and I have been on, we've seen them all. Remember Sheena, Roy?"

"Sheena? Wasn't she the Queen of the Jungle?"

"Cute, Roy. She was the dog who climbed up on the roof after the cat. When we first arrived at that house, I thought I was seeing things."

"Sounds vaguely familiar. Okay, who's next?"

"Next for what, Roy?" Marco asked innocently.

"Next for their roasting. I know we have all weekend for this, but…"


	3. Chapter 3

**Rainy Days and Memories (chapter 3)**

A thoughtful expression covered Johnny's usually very expressive countenance.

"I don't think we're quite through with the animal part of this discussion. Let's talk a bit about how our two friends managed to just show up at the station one day."

Hank nodded his head. "Henry was an enigma."

"He sure was. We had no idea how he had even gotten into the station when everything was locked up. We came back from a run and there he was." said Johnny with a thoughtful smile.

"And when we fed him and the plates were gone when we came back? That dog had some seriously strange powers."

Chet laughed as another thought crossed his mind. "I know what you mean, Marco. He even had a bit of ESP."

"How about the time when you tried to show him how to use the dog house?"

"What about it, Mike?"

"Well, it didn't work. He got YOU to go in it instead…and then the whole house rolled off the couch…God, that was funny. You had the big bone in your mouth…he took it from you and then went back onto the couch."

"And then there was how he had come to be named Henry in the first place. We were talking about what to name him and Johnny blurted out Henry…and we all liked it, but you, Cap."

"For good reason, Roy…that was my name. But I did finally agree to it…as long as that dog was never called Hank."

"And let's not forget about Boot. You guys said that he was as dumb as a boot, but don't forget he did help me and Roy find that missing hiker."

"Yeah, Johnny…and then he promptly left us for a snorkel company."

"And then he came back. And like I said there were lots of other animals. Remember that rescue in the lion's den? I felt like Daniel."

Roy couldn't help but to chuckle. "I never knew you could climb up a rope that fast."

"That was close, pal."

"Yeah, it was Cap. And Roy, there was the time we had to get that car salesman guy out of his car with a tiger in it."

"I remember that. He was told not to bring any food inside with him, and he brought peanuts or something…the cat went a little crazy. And there was also the time we had to get a guy out of a super market after he got attacked by a tiger on the loose."

"Didn't you guys rescue an actor that was trapped on set with a bear?"

"Yeah, we did Mike. That was another fun one. And then he invited me and Roy to a Hollywood bash."

This time it was Chet who laughed loudly. "And the two of you were the only morons who showed up in tuxedos…not to mention arriving in Johnny's Rover. What a sight you guys must have been."

Flashing his trademark Gage grin, Johnny nodded his head. "You wanna go there, Kelly? How about the time we pulled the practical joke on you about your 'failing' vision? The flickering lights…the fly…and the eye chart…you were pathetic. And then when I tried to convince you that it was a joke, you still didn't buy it. If you want to talk about looking silly…"

"Okay, so we all looked silly at one time or another." stated Chet matter-of-factly.

"Yeah, like the time you guys were on the Tom Jensen Show. If it hadn't been for that guy getting electrocuted and the cameras rolling while you took care of him…"

"I never said that we were TV stars, Mike. Roy and I know our limitations, don't we partner?"

"I suppose so, Johnny. There was that other talk show that we were on too…that didn't go so well either, especially not for you."

"That's because you kept cutting me off."

"Hey, let's not forget about Roy's appearance on that TV game show with Joanne. What was the last question that you guys bombed out on?"

"You had to bring that up again, didn't you Marco?"

"The last question was, 'what was your favorite vegetable?' Joanne said that it was between peas and carrots, and picked carrots. I said it was peas."

Roy gave his partner a curious look. "And you were no doubt shouting it out at the television."

"I was. You said artichokes. You didn't even remember what your favorite vegetable was, Roy."

"My favorite vegetables ARE artichokes. And…you don't have to remind me that I didn't match Joanne's answer…I slept on the sofa that night."

The rest of the guys all laughed at Roy's last comment.

"She made you sleep on the couch that night, Roy? But why?"

"Why, you ask Cap? Because…because I am not a mind reader apparently."

"We all looked pretty silly on that call at the ice rink. Those two mascots got into a fight on the ice, and we all had to go on the ice to help them. We were slipping on the ice…it was like we were in a Three Stooges' movie or something."

The other men all looked over at Chet with a confused look.

"Chet, how do you go from Roy talking about his night on the sofa, to the ice rink call, in one breath?"

"We were talking about all of us looking silly, Marco. I would say that this one definitely fits. And talking about animals and being silly…you were the one who named that mouse Herbert. Who names rodents?"

"I do. They're God's creatures, too. They deserve to have a name as much as you or anyone else does."

And no sooner had those words come out of Marco's mouth that there was a sudden burst of lightning, and a very loud boom following it, causing all of the men to jump.

"How are you on batteries and flashlights, John?"

Johnny flashed his trademark grin at his captain. "I assure you all that I am fully stocked up on any necessary emergency items, Cap…including flashlights and batteries. I have two radios, too. They're all upstairs in one of my kitchen cabinets."

"Let's be glad that we're not working in this weather."

"Amen to that, Mike." replied Marco.

Sitting silently for a few moments, the guys all sat looking out the window at the vicious weather outside.

"In case we haven't said it yet, or maybe even if we did…good call on not going to the mountains this weekend, Cap." Johnny said with a smile.

"That's why I make the big bucks, right?" Hank replied.

"Now what?" asked Chet."

"What do you mean by 'now what', Chet?"

"Well, we've talked about a lot of stuff already, Cap…what's there left to talk about?"

"Are you kidding me? Roy and I have a million things to talk about. In the years that we've all worked together, we've been through a lot of stuff. We're nowhere close to being done, Chet. But, if you would like to take a short break, we can play cards. I think I have gotten better in recent years."

This time is was Stoker's turn to laugh. "I hope so, Johnny…because you sure stunk back then. I remember back when Captain Hammer was our captain, dish duty was decided by cards…and you ALWAYS did the dishes."

"Hey Roy. You remember that call we went on where the guy was having a heart attack at his poker game, and he wouldn't leave unless I finished his hand?"

"Yeah, I do."

"Did you win, John?"

"Yeah, I won the hand…the guy ended up bluffing…he had nothing. I won him a pretty large chunk of change."

"I was just remembering something from back in the day. And I remember it because it had quite an effect on me…talking that kid Frankie down in the airplane. His father had had a heart attack and the kid didn't know how to fly."

"I remember that, Roy. Didn't the guy end up passing?"

"Yeah he did, Johnny. It was pretty heartbreaking to see."

Looking over at the senior paramedic, Marco smiled at him.

"As I recall that wasn't the only rescue that had such a big effect on you. You DO remember Sister Barbara?"

Roy nodded his head. "THAT will ALWAYS stay with me. She was some woman. It's also lucky that those kids weren't more seriously injured."

After another bright flash of lightning, Johnny was reminded of two other times with extremely nasty weather.

"This awful rain storm does bring to mind two other times. There was the time when we ended up stranded at Station 86 when the road had gotten washed out during a storm. And thanks to my two pals Chet and Marco, I lost a date. I had you guys call the girl and explain to her my situation of being stranded, and what do you do? You end up going out with her."

Shaking his head, Chet added, "And that didn't go well. We got into a bit of trouble sailing, and Marco lost his voice."

"What was the other time, John?"

"The night that Dr. Brackett had apparently gone to Sacramento to testify before the committee for the paramedic program. The weather was horrible. We were called to a tunnel collapse. After working all night on-scene we saw a newspaper front page about Brackett having testified, and the program passing. He never admitted it to us, but when we got his orders over the bio-phone that night, the bill hadn't yet passed at that point."

"The paramedic program sure has come a long way. Brackett was dead set against it from the beginning. Lucky for all of us, he changed his tune and came through at the hearing. I think his mindset changed when it was Dixie who almost bought it at a car accident scene. I still can't believe that at one point we had to drive by the hospital to get a nurse and then go to a scene. At a traffic accident we were nothing more than traffic directors."

"That did seem silly to me too, Roy. I don't know how you guys do it…get the job done. I have a lot of admiration for you guys."

The two paramedics smiled at the engineer. Though they knew that Mike had always respected them as co-workers, it was nice to hear the normally reserved man, express it verbally to them.

"Thanks Mike. You're not so bad yourself." Johnny said with a wink.

"Though there were a few close calls with you guys leaving the program. Like when Brackett gave you the re-certification exam…"

"And the computer ate up the results, Marco. We remember that don't we, Roy?"

"Sure do. That exam was a killer. Some really good paramedics failed the test…and a few of them never went back to being a paramedic."

"And what about the time when Roy and I took the engineers' exam? Roy was up for the promotion, but didn't end up taking it."

Roy thoughtfully nodded his head. "I remember that like it was yesterday, Chet. I really struggled with that decision…but ultimately I just couldn't do it. Being a paramedic just meant too much to me."

"I'll tell you what else I remember about that time…the thick fog that led to the giant pile up on the San Diego Freeway. I remember that because I helped save that baby's life when I was doing CPR on her. That was one of the high points of my firefighting career thus far. It's still hard to believe that the gang is breaking up."

"Well…it's not like none of us will ever see each other again, Chet. We'll get together."

"You mean, as a battalion chief you wouldn't mind hanging out with the rest of us?"

"Kelly, I always said that we were family…and I meant it. What we've all been through together over the years…it's been a special journey. Just because we're all getting promoted and going our separate ways doesn't have to mean that we're no longer family."

"Amen, Cap." said Marco raising his coffee mug.


End file.
